Humans
Humans are mortal beings who usually possess no magical or supernatural powers. They are the dominant race on Earth and the majority are unaware of the existence of the Night World. However, as the Old Powers are awakening and the millennium is approaching, the human race is in danger of being wiped out by the oncoming Apocalypse. Physiology Unlike Night People, humans do not exhibit "inhuman beauty", though some are considered to be quite attractive, even by Night World standards. Being mortal, humans are more vulnerable to death than vampires, as well werewolves, shapeshifters and even witches (who are mortal themselves). In terms of biology, humans resemble witches the most out of all the other species. As a result, it is quite easy for some witches who do not know of their heritage to mistakenly believe themselves to be humans. It should be noted that some humans do seem to exhibit supernatural or magical abilities; humans that exchange blood with vampires briefly take on some vampire characteristics, though these eventually fade and are nowhere near as powerful as a full vampire's. The human offspring of a shapeshifter-human coupling may also take on small characteristics of the shapeshifter parent whilst still being human - Rashel Jordan's father was a feline shapeshifter and Rashel is noted for being unusually agile and 'cat-like'. It is mentioned that Circle Daybreak witches once attempted to teach humans spells, suggesting some humans are capable of working magic, though not to the extent of of true witches. For a time, people seemed to believe that a human could possibly be one of the Wild Powers, although thus far, all the Wild Powers are Night People (though it should be noted that Jez Redfern and Iliana Dominick both have human blood in their veins). So far, the only human who seems capable of any kind of magical abilities without being a Night Person first is Sarah Strange, who has the power of Sight and precognition. Notably, humans can be transformed into Night People, including werewolves, made vampires and shapeshifters. Sub-species Old Souls : Main article: Old Souls Old Souls are human beings reincarnated many lifetimes. They are said to be very tolerant, as they have experienced lives as people of other races, creeds, genders, religions, etc. Old Souls tend to follow a similar cycle in each of their lives, like Hannah Snow being killed by Maya Dragonslayer before she ever reaches the age of 17. If an Old Soul is turned into a vampire, they don't reincarnate ever again. Hybrids Humans have been shown to be able to produce offspring with a number of Night People, most notably witches. It would seem that these 'Hybrids' usually inherit the genes of their Night Person parent (such as in the case of Lupe Acevedo), though there are exceptions (for example, Keller inherited her father's shapeshifter genes, whilst her twin Rashel Jordan is a human, like her mother). Humans were believed to be incapable of breeding with lamia, however, the existence of the vampire-human hybrid, Jez Redfern (who is capable of living both as a human and as a vampire) throws doubt on this. History First World Before the human race repleted the majority of the Earth's population, they were subjected to the tyrannical rule of the Dragons and the shapeshifters. In some areas, humans were sacrifices to the shapeshifters whereas others were bred as food to the dragons. It wasn't until Hecate Witch-Queen led the witch clans in a battle against the dragons that all of the races (including humans) were freed. The witches were victorious and for their actions, the dragons were buried in the deepest places of the earth in eternal slumber. Second World As the earth recovered from the destruction of the First World, the witches rose to power. Unlike the shapeshifters' reign, the witches maintained friendly relations with humans, even taking human consorts as mates (mainly because male witches were rare). It is mentioned that only "some" of Hecate Witch-Queen's tribe could do magic, at least when her daughter Hellewise Hearth-Woman ruled, suggesting that humans were also part of the tribe. Hellewise in particular seemed tolerant of humans, as she made a law forbidding witches from harming them. Third World Not much is known about the history of the Third World, but it is known that the vampire race was in control, suggesting that humans were similarly oppressed as they were by the shapeshifters in the First World. Fourth World Eventually, the Great Flood allowed the human race to expand and become dominant on Earth. This forced the Night People to make their existence secret to the human world; resulting in the formal establishment of the Night World. Night World laws forbid Night People from associating too closely with humans - the cardinal laws explicitly forbid Night People from telling a human about the Night World or falling in love with a human. However, it is seen as acceptable to hunt, toy with and even kill humans, provided it is done with discretion. However, in the late 20th century, some Night People, in particular the youngest generation of Harmans and Redferns, began finding human soulmates, whilst other Night People rejected Night World dogma of superiority over humankind and sought to live in harmony with them. This lead to the reformation of Circle Daybreak. In light of the Old Powers re-awakening and the threat of the apocalypse looming, many humans who have discovered the Night World's existence have joined Circle Daybreak, seeking to end the bloodshed and establish a new world order where humans and Night People live together in peace. Powers and Abilities Under natural circumstances, humans have no distinct powers whatsoever. In rare cases, however, they develop supernatural abilities as a result of encounters with Night People: *'Reincarnation:' Humans who are reborn several lifetimes after death are known as Old Souls. *'Physical Enhancements:' Exchanging blood with a vampire causes a human's physical strength, speed, agility, reflexes, and senses to be heightened to a certain degree. However, these abilities are temporary and disappear as soon as the vampire's blood leaves their system. In rare cases, however, traces of vampire blood are still present and the human retains some sort of superhuman feature. *'Telepathy:' During the process of exchanging blood with a vampire, a connection is formed known as the "blood-bond". Through this bond, telepathic thoughts can be shared. *'Witchcraft:' Humans have the capability to work magic and practice witchcraft, albeit on a lesser extent than witches. *'Animalistic Traits:' The human offspring of a human and a shapeshifter often inherits some sort of animal trait from the shapeshifter parent, while maintaining his/her humanity at the same time. Weaknesses *'Mortality:' Because humans are vulnerable to death, they can be killed by virtually anything. Notable Humans *Mary-Lynnette Carter *Mark Carter *Eric Ross *David Blackburn *Rashel Jordan *Daphne Childs *Hannah Snow *Hugh Davis *Claire Goddard *Maggie Neely *Sarah Strange Trivia *In Night World society, humans are viewed as "vermin" due to their dominance on Earth. **It should be noted that Night People also have a superiority complex towards human and among certain races in the Night World such as werewolves and shapeshifters. *Compared to other Night People, witches seem to have a more "friendly" relationship with humans overall. **From prehistoric times up until today, witches would take human husbands (mainly because male witches are rare and to continue the species). **Circle Daybreak was originally a witch organization that was started to establish peace between the races by teaching humans witchcraft. It was disbanded during the Burning Times until it's revival in the 20th century because of the rise of the Old Powers. *Humans can be converted into vampires, werewolves, and shapeshifters. Category:Species Category:Humans